The mobile game hasn’t been available in China since it launched last summer, and Chinese regulators will probably keep it that way. The country’s State Administration of Press, Publications, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) recently forewarned that it will likely stop approving augmented-reality location-based games (AR+LBS).

China’s concerns

The announcement comes after the China Audio/Video and Digital Publishing Association raised concerns about personal safety, as noted by Reuters. Regulators pointed to numerous mishaps around the world—such as car accidents, walking off cliffs, and bumping into people and objects—which happened while people were playing Pokémon GO.

But the bigger worry is the game’s geo-location functionality, which China fears could lead to the discovery of military base locations for example. Add on that Pokémon GO is built on the use of Google Maps, and because Google services are blocked in China, the game never really had a chance at launching in the country.

Die-hard fans will still find ways to buck the system. As I’ve written before, Chinese gamers could access Pokémon GO using a VPN, download it and a virtual map of another city (such as Los Angeles) to their phones, and use that map to play while physically located in China.

And note at least that the government isn't considering banning all augmented-reality location-based apps--only those that are mobile games. Though it is unclear whether such games already on the market, such as Pet Bang Bang and Demon Catcher, would need to shut down if the ruling is made final.

The latest regulation

China has long been wary of digital gaming, and if SAPPRFT’s ruling goes through as expected, it would just be the latest regulation written in the interest of personal safety and public security. Past rulings by the State Council have said that minors must have time limits to their online gaming sessions (an "anti-fatigue" policy), and cannot go to Internet cafés.

The State Council also announced another regulation aimed to protect minors this week: anyone under 18 will be prohibited from playing digital games between midnight and 8AM, on all platforms including mobile. This seems as though it will be difficult to monitor, and likely would not impact digital games revenue much as youth under age 18 are typically asleep during those hours.

I am the Managing Partner and Founder of Niko Partners (http://www.nikopartners.com), a leading market research agency in the Asian games market. I founded Niko in 2002 and have spent 13 years analyzing the Chinese and Southeast Asian PC, console and mobile games industries...